There is mounting evidence that dozens of
Public prosecutors in Weiden in der Oberpfalz in the state of Bavaria, not far from the Czech border, have opened an investigation into several alleged people smugglers suspected of obtaining service passports to aid persons not officially entitled to enter Germany. The German police was reportedly made aware of irregularities last year and has been observing trafficking activities since late 2020.
Many of the
Weiden's chief prosecutor Gerd Schäfer confirmed to DW that an investigation was in place and said that it concerned 30 people suspected of having smuggled at least 213 people into Germany on gray passports. He said the case was particularly complicated because it is not one of clear illegal entry into the country as those who had come in were travelling on valid service passports. "We're only at the beginning of our investigation," Schäfer said, adding that he hoped that the cooperation with
It is not only state officials who are entitled to apply for service passports. They might also be issued within the context of cooperation between two non-governmental organizations. In such a case, the foreign organization would have to issue an invitation.
There is already a similar investigation underway in Hanover involving Ersin K., who allegedly sent false invitations to 53 people in Malatya, in central
...just another cheapjack Moslem dictatorship, brought to you by the Moslem Brüderbund..., to attend a conference about the environment between July 30 and August 30, 2020. According to public prosecutors in Hanover, 46 people travelled to Germany by bus before disappearing. Five of them later applied for asylum.
German politicians have called for more clarity. Left Party politician Gökay Akbulut issued an verbal request to the government asking that an investigation be conducted into how
The government answered that the people in question had tried to come to Germany without a visa and to apply for asylum. It added that there were suspicions that the gray passports had been obtained as a result of bribery and corruption.
The government added that border authorities had been informed of the problem at the end of 2020 and that German police had been working closely with
Speaking on a
It is not clear how many of these are in Germany. The German interior minister has said that this is part of the investigation currently underway.
According to reports in